The dressing room had completely transformed. Not to mention the clothes and shoes everywhere, there were about a dozen people crowded around the figure sitting at the vanity, making it feel nearly impossible to squeeze in. Fortunately, the team had already selected a new necklace for Yu Jiaojiao, and the rest of the jewelry boxes had been put away, no longer drawing attention.
Gu Mi thought some big-name celebrity had arrived. A glint of cunning flashed in her eyes as she was about to go over and “introduce” herself.
Just then, Sister Wang, who had been standing between her and Yu Jiaojiao, moved aside. Yu Jiaojiao’s face came into Gu Mi’s view.
Gu Mi’s smiling expression froze.
Yu Jiaojiao had been generating a lot of buzz lately and possessed a face that many female actresses envied. How could Gu Mi not recognize her?
Watching as Yu Jiaojiao was surrounded by her entourage, her stunning red dress shimmering brilliantly, Gu Mi clenched the wrist of one of her assistants tightly behind her back to keep from revealing her obvious hostility.
She didn’t know that while no one else was paying attention to her, 101, who had been following Yu Jiaojiao, had taken in the entire scene.
“Oho~ Host, your first ‘Vicious Passerby’ has officially come online~”
“Huh?” Yu Jiaojiao followed its gaze and saw Gu Mi staring at her with a strange expression.
Not expecting Yu Jiaojiao to notice, Gu Mi quickly put on a friendly smile and nodded at her. “Hello, I’m Gu Mi. I’m one of the guests invited to this episode.”
Yu Jiaojiao gave her a once-over and nodded coldly. “Mm.”
Receiving such a cold reception, Gu Mi felt even angrier inside, but there was nothing she could do about it for now.
She pretended to look awkward. “Um… I’m also using this dressing room…”
When Yu Jiaojiao turned her head, Sister Wang noticed her as well.
Although she didn’t want to reveal Yu Jiaojiao’s identity, Sister Wang also didn’t want the outside world to think her artist was so arrogant and overbearing.
“Sorry about this. We might have brought a few too many people. Quick, make some room to let her through.”
The team members did as they were told, but a dressing room was only so big. As Gu Mi passed through, it was unavoidable that people brushed up against her.
She kept a smile on her face, but in her heart, she had already cursed Yu Jiaojiao and her team countless times.
Given Yu Jiaojiao’s coldness, Gu Mi no longer had any inclination to offer a warm face only to be met with a cold shoulder. Sitting down on the dressing chair, she caught a glimpse of the high-end chair cover beneath Yu Jiaojiao out of the corner of her eye.
She withdrew her gaze without making a scene, took out her phone, pretended to check some messages, and then began typing something.
“Host, this woman is telling someone to tip off the paparazzi. She wants them to pose as production crew members and say that you’re throwing a diva tantrum! Is this how dirty the entertainment industry is? How disgusting! You should have Sister Wang prepare to counter the negative PR!”
“What did she say about me?” Yu Jiaojiao didn’t even lift her eyes.
“She said your personal team has taken up four-fifths of the dressing room. That you’re ridiculously dramatic. That you even need a leather cover just to sit on a chair. She wants to use this opportunity to step on you and make herself look pitiful in comparison… She’s just a mere passerby, yet she dares to scheme against our supporting female lead crew! I’ve got dirt on her too. Let me tell you, you should have Sister Wang leak it as well.”
When the system mentioned ‘taken up four-fifths of the dressing room,’ Yu Jiaojiao glanced around.
After it finished speaking, she said, “Isn’t everything she said true?”
“…Gah?” 101 looked around and froze completely in place.
…
Before long, someone from the production team came to remind them that the director wanted the artists to head to the set.
Yu Jiaojiao changed into a pair of matching shoes and stood up to leave, drawing an admiring look from the staff. Sister Wang and two assistants accompanied her, while the rest of the team stayed behind to pack up.
After Yu Jiaojiao left, Gu Mi followed shortly after.
Guided by a staff member, they walked around a corner and arrived at the filming location for the first scene—a spacious, open square.
The two of them were the first to arrive; the others had not yet appeared.
As soon as they saw the artists approaching, the director and his team all turned their attention in unison.
It was no exaggeration to say that everyone’s gaze locked firmly onto Yu Jiaojiao the moment they saw her.
Her large, bright cat-like eyes, exquisitely beautiful features, and skin so delicate it looked like it might break at the slightest touch.
At 165 cm, she wasn’t particularly tall, but her proportions were flawless—curves in all the right places. The waist-cinching red dress made her waist look as if it could be encircled with just one hand. She was like a little fairy.
The cameraman instinctively captured the scene.
There was no need to mention Sister Wang and the others beside her. Even Gu Mi, a somewhat distinctive young beauty in her own right, was completely overshadowed.
“Alright, we already have two artists on set. Get all the equipment ready, everyone!” The director was the first to snap back to attention and issue the command.
At his words, the crew on set took their positions.
Sister Wang and the other agents and assistants were signaled to step aside, and the camera crew began following Yu Jiaojiao and Gu Mi.
This variety show had no host, only off-camera guidance.
A stagehand guided them from the side. “Welcome, both of you, to our ‘Extreme Challenge.’ Please go and draw your number plates.”
A staff member had already placed a lottery box on a table in the middle of the square. Without a second thought, Yu Jiaojiao walked straight up and grabbed one. She looked down at it—the number was one.
“Huh? What’s going on? Shouldn’t number one have been drawn by the female lead?” The system was taken aback.
Yu Jiaojiao thought back to the novel’s plot, and it seemed that the female lead had indeed drawn number one last.
Gu Mi followed closely behind and also drew a number—it was eight.
“Alright, please wait over here, both of you.”
Being filmed, Yu Jiaojiao felt a slight sense of restriction on her freedom, but she managed to hold back.
Perhaps trying to create some variety show banter, Gu Mi attempted to strike up a conversation with Yu Jiaojiao.
“Jiaojiao, do you know what our upcoming task is?”
This was clearly just making conversation. Yu Jiaojiao shook her head without saying a word, coming off as very aloof.
Gu Mi had no choice but to give an awkward smile and stand silently beside her, waiting for the other artists to arrive.
Off to the side, the director had originally wanted the two of them to improvise, hoping to catch some trending moments, but instead, the atmosphere had gone completely cold.
Fortunately, this variety show had a long filming schedule, allowing for plenty of editing, so he let them be.
Still… watching Yu Jiaojiao’s behavior, the director grew a bit concerned and walked over to Sister Wang.
To his surprise, Sister Wang didn’t seem worried about her artist at all. Instead, she asked him first, “Did you sell the necklace yet?”
“Are we really selling it?” The director hesitated.
“Did you think I was joking?”
Under Sister Wang’s gaze, the director called over another stagehand and instructed him to sell the necklace through a special channel. “It’s a donation from Yu Jiaojiao. Let everyone know that today’s starting bonus is an extra five hundred per person, and we’re upgrading to a big feast for lunch.”
“Wow!” The crew members around them exclaimed in surprise and delight.
Meanwhile, 101 quickly noticed that more than a dozen people had suddenly developed a favorability rating of over sixty toward Yu Jiaojiao—all of them crew members from the show.
“Wow, host! Your first task is already complete! You can now unlock the second chapter of the gossip manhua!”
At the same time, the tip that Gu Mi had leaked was also sent by the paparazzi to public social media accounts. The gossip-loving netizens rushed over to check out the tea.
Seeing that it was another piece of news about the drama queen Yu Jiaojiao, they rolled their eyes out of boredom.
Just as they were about to leave, a livestream window popped up in the bottom right corner of their screens again—the same “Gossip Manhua” as before.
Even though the last time they had heard the whole thing sounded like ridiculous rumors made up by that paparazzi and Yu Jiaojiao, well, people could never resist their own restless curiosity. So they clicked on it again.
The system’s words to Yu Jiaojiao echoed through the livestream, and a familiar manhua book appeared on the screen.
The manhua opened, revealing the second chapter.
【The wealthy heiress wife of the C-actor opened the hotel room door to catch him in the act, only to find that besides the C-actor and the actress, the film’s director and several key creative members were also in the room, gathered together discussing the filming.
Rewind to ten minutes earlier: the C-actor had suddenly received a text message informing him that his wife was on her way. Hence the scene that unfolded.
Although the C-actor’s wife was suspicious, she couldn’t find any solid evidence and had to leave with lingering doubts.
But then, who sent that text message?】
Next, the manhua vividly depicted the events once more.
Upon seeing the text message, the C-actor broke out in a cold sweat. He quickly told the actress to get dressed, hastily tidied up the room, and then called the director and others who were staying on the same floor.
It turned out that the film’s director and his team were birds of a feather with the C-actor, always covering for each other. And so, they managed to deceive the wealthy heiress.
The final panel showed the text message screen, with a note that read ‘Assistant Yang.’
【Wow! This is getting interesting!】
【The director of the movie Chen Yizun i currently filming? Isn’t that so-and-so?】]
【Assistant Yang? Could it be that Chen Yizun assigned someone specifically to keep an eye on his wife?】
【Wait… Could it be that Chen Yizun bribed someone close to his wife?】
Those who could enter this livestream were all seasoned gossip enthusiasts, well accustomed to the many scandals in the entertainment industry. Last time, it was only because Chen Yizun had appeared on set as usual that they assumed this gossip manhua was spreading false rumors.
Now that they looked at it, the overall logic wasn’t too flawed, and those inclined toward conspiracy theories were starting to believe it a bit.
Of course, many more were still taking a wait-and-see approach.
Over on Yu Jiaojiao’s side, after finishing reading the manhua in her mind, she also furrowed her brow slightly.
But as usual, her focus was different. “Didn’t you say in the last episode that you would reveal who this actress is?”
“Um…” 101 was stumped by her question. Because this second chapter had indeed kept the actress on the sidelines again—her face hadn’t even been drawn.
“You don’t keep your word.” After saying this, Yu Jiaojiao fell silent.
“Wait! I can give you a hint! You’re about to meet this actress very soon! She’s one of the eight guests invited to ‘Extreme Challenge.’ After you meet her, you can try to guess who it is!” The system tried to reignite her interest in the gossip.
Yu Jiaojiao ignored it.
But when those gossip-loving netizens heard this, their curiosity was instantly piqued.
【That actress is on ‘Extreme Challenge’?】
【Wait, wait, wait… Let me go search for it! I’ll be right back!】
【Oh my god! If there really is an actress who matches the description, then this gossip is most likely true!! I’ll go search for it too!!】
A little while later, those people returned, bringing back news that left them even more bewildered.
【What the heck?! There are two who match?!】
【No wonder that paparazzi guy told Yu Jiaojiao she could guess after meeting them! Aaah… I can’t take it anymore! Which one is it?!】